HUMAN RIGHTS FORUM ON

UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW (UPR), BANGLADESH

BANGLADESH: STAKEHOLDERS’ REPORT UNDER THE UPR
01 September 2008
UPRsubmissions@ohchr.org.
I. METHODOLOGY
1. This report has been prepared by the Human Rights Forum on UPR (‘the Forum’), Bangladesh, a coalition
of 17 human rights and development organisations formed to prepare a joint stakeholders’ report under the
UPR (see Annex 1 for list of members of the Forum, and contributors to the Report). It draws upon a series of
national consultations held in March, April and August 2008 by the Forum and on the publications,
documentation and experience of Forum members. The key concerns raised in this Report have also been
discussed nationally by Forum Members at a consultation convened by the Government of Bangladesh
(Ministry of Foreign Affairs) in August 2008. This report follows the guidelines adopted by the Human Rights
Council. It refers to continuities of law and practice impacting on human rights, but focuses on incidents
occurring within a four year period (with references to the Government referring to either the Bangladesh-
Nationalist Party led Four Party Alliance Government (Oct 2001 to Oct 2006) or the Caretaker Government
(Oct 2006 to Jan 2007, appointment of new Advisors from Jan 2007).
II. BACKGROUND AND FRAMEWORK

International human rights obligations

2. Human Rights Treaties: Bangladesh has ratified all the core human rights treaties (ICCPR, ICESCR,
CERD, CEDAW, CAT, CRC). However it has entered reservations to several treaties. It has accepted the
individual communications procedure under only one treaty (CEDAW) and does not accept any inquiry
procedure by any treaty body. In addition to the core instruments noted above, Bangladesh is a party to the
Genocide Convention, the Geneva Conventions, several key ILO Conventions as well as treaties on women’s
political rights and on consent to marriage. It has signed, but not ratified, the Rome Statute on the ICC and the
Convention on the Protection of Migrant Workers and their Families. It has not as yet acceded to the Refugee
Convention, or the Convention on Protection from Enforced Disappearance, or ILO Convention No169 on
Indigenous and Tribal Peoples 1989. (See Annex 2 for details).
3. Bangladesh’s Voluntary Pledges: Prior to election to the Human Rights Council in 2006, the Government
made voluntary pledges (see Annex 3 for the full text) including, among others, to- Ensure independence of
the Anti-Corruption Commission; Contemplate adhering to the remaining international and regional human
rights instruments; Continue to cooperate with the special procedures and mechanisms of the
Council;Continue to endeavour, through its national development policies, to ensure provision of the basic
necessities of its people including food, clothing, shelter, education and primary health care; Establish the
National Human Rights Commission; and Separate the judiciary and the executive.
The state has only partly met some of these obligations to date. With respect to pledge on ensuring
independence of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), while the ACC has been significantly overhauled,
with new appointments, and capacity building commenced, concerns have been expressed regarding its actual
operations. Regarding its obligations under the treaty bodies, Bangladesh has not as yet withdrawn any
reservations or declarations to any treaty, nor taken steps to incorporate treaty provisions in national law, nor
made significant progress with the reporting process (except with regard to CEDAW) or to comply with the
observations of treaty monitoring bodies. Regarding its national development policies, while important steps
forward have been taking in adopting the National Women’s Development Policy and Food Policy, concerns
remain regarding implementation. Regarding its pledge on the NHRC, though the Government promulgated
the National Human Rights Commission Ordinance in 2007 and announced establishment of the Commission
on 1 September 2008, concerns remain regarding the effectiveness of the proposed NHRC given that no
appointments have been made as yet. With regard to separation of the judiciary, although critical legislation
has been adopted under the current Government, subsequent steps taken by the Government (Ministry of Law)
have faced constitutional challenges before the Courts, and reports of interference with the decisions of the
lower judiciary continue to be made.
Domestic Law Obligations

4. Constitutionally Protected Rights: The Constitution of 1972, promulgated within a year of the
establishment of the new state of Bangladesh, contains explicit guarantees of a wide range of civil and
political rights, and also secures the right a remedy for their violation by way of a constitutional petition
before the Supreme Court. These rights include equality before law, equal protection of the law, non-
discrimination on grounds of race, religion, caste, sex, or place of birth, special measures for women, children
and ‘backward sections of citizens’, equality of opportunity in public employment, protection of the rights to
life and personal liberty, the right to be treated in accordance with law, safeguards as to arrest and detention,
prohibition of forced labour, protection in respect of trial and punishment, freedom of assembly, freedom of
association, freedom of thought and conscience, freedom of expression freedom of profession and occupation,
freedom of religion, the right to property and the right to protection of the home and correspondence.
5. Fundamental Principles of State Policy: The Constitution also sets out the fundamental principles of state
policy, which mandate the state to ensure, among others, women’s participation in national life, free and
compulsory education, public health, equality of opportunity, work as a right and duty, rural development and
promotion of local government institutions, as well as respect for international law. Although traditionally
considered to be non-justiciable, these fundamental principles have been applied in a number of cases by the
Supreme Court, in order to protect economic and social rights. 1
6. Notably, among these fundamental principles, the original ‘four pillars’ of the Constitution – that is the
principles of secularism, nationalism, democracy and socialism’ – were systematically eroded under years of
autocratic and military rule. The principles of democracy were replaced in 1974 by effective one party rule.
Subsequently the principle of ‘secularism’ was replaced under military rule in 1976 with that of ‘absolute trust
and faith in the Almighty Allah’, which in turn was supplemented by the declaration, again under military rule
in 1982, of Islam as the state religion, despite the diversity of faith communities within the country.
7. Domestic application of international law: International treaty obligations must be incorporated into
national law before they can be directly enforceable. 2 Such incorporation has not taken place with respect to
most treaty provisions (with the exception of parts of the Genocide Convention). However, international
human rights norms have been judicially applied in order to interpret expansively the scope of constitutionally
guaranteed rights in a number of significant cases.

8. Legislative Framework: Although the Constitution states that laws violative of fundamental rights shall be
void, pre-constitutional laws, which are discriminatory or in clear contravention of guaranteed fundamental
rights continue to be applied and enforced. Such laws include respectively the gender-discriminatory
Citizenship Act 1951, the Passport Act and Rules, and personal laws governing rights within the family.
9. A number of post-constitutional laws have been consistently identified as furthering human rights abuses,
but nevertheless remain in application. The most notorious among these is the Special Powers Act 1974,
which every Government to date has failed to repeal, despite clear electoral commitments in this regard. Anti-
terrorism laws, enacted by every elected government since 1990, have also enabled the exercise of arbitrary
powers or arrest and severely encroached on fair trials. Most recently, the Anti-Terrorism Ordinance, 2008 has
created a set of new offences of ‘terrorism’ and provides for the speedy trial of persons accused of such
offences, many of which are punishable by the death penalty.
10. Recent progress on long-standing demands for legislation include, for example, dialogues with civil
society on the need for a law on Protection from Domestic Violence, or the preparation of the Right to
Information Bill, the draft Police Ordinance, the Consumer’s Protection Bill and the Citizenship Bill.
However, some of these have been criticized by human rights groups and the media as failing to comply with
international standards. The momentum for framing these laws has largely been from civil society, and while
the Caretaker Government has responded, it is unclear whether it will follow through on adopting legislation
prior to elections; the major political parties have yet to make clear commitments on these issues.
11. Policy Framework: Two important new policies have been adopted within the reporting period with
regard to rights protection. First, the Government adopted the National Food Policy (NFP) in 2006, statedly to
ensure dependable and sustained food security for all, at all times. 3
12. The original National Women’s Development Policy 1997 was significantly amended in 2004, in a highly
secretive process, in an apparent effort not only to limit women’s equal rights to and participation in the
economy but also to bolster a specific construction of femininity and the role of women in the family. After

1
See I. Byrne and S. Hossain, “Economic and Social Rights Case Law of Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka” in M. Langford, Socio-
Economic Rights, Cambridge University Press, 2009, forthcoming.
2
For example, the State is required to base its international relations on the principles of respect for [….] equality, […] and respect for international
law and the principles enunciated in the United Nations Charter (Art. 25, Constitution of Bangladesh, 1972).
3
Md. Korban Ali, ‘Right to Food’, in ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh, ASK, Dhaka, 2006 at p.92.
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long and consistent advocacy by women’s rights groups, when the present government announced a new
National Women’s Development Policy (NWDP) on 8 March 2008, it was widely welcomed except by certain
Islamist groups, which publicly demonstrated on the streets, threatened women’s rights activists, and wholly
erroneously claimed that the Policy guaranteed equal inheritance rights and thus ‘contravened the provisions
of the [Holy] Qu’ran’. Ironically, the original 1997 Policy’s reference to equality regarding inheritance and
property was omitted from the final 2008 version.

Institutional Structure for Protection of Human Rights

13. Bangladesh has a parliamentary form of government, with the Prime Minister as the head of the
government and the President as the head of the state. Direct elections involving all citizens over the age 18
are required to be held every five years for the unicameral parliament known as the Jatiya Sangsad. Some 45
seats in addition to a total of 300 are reserved for women, on the basis of election by proportional
representation from among parties or alliances already represented in Parliament. 4 Although parliament is the
highest law making body in the country, but subject to the provisions of the constitution, when Parliament is
not in session or stands dissolved, the President may make laws by ordinance. Since October 2006 to date, all
legislation has been made by way of Presidential Ordinance, as Parliament stands dissolved. Several petitions
are pending before the Supreme Court regarding the constitutionality of such laws.
14. The Judiciary, and in particular the Supreme Court – comprising the Appellate and High Court Division
respectively – is responsible for the enforcement of fundamental rights through its constitutional jurisdiction.
Despite clear guarantees of judicial independence in the original Constitution, a series of amendments and
continuing executive interference have resulted in significant erosion of the traditionally high esteem in which
the judiciary has been held. Deep and partisan politicization of the higher judiciary – mainly through
appointment and non-confirmation of judges, as well as providing opportunities for their holding high office
following retirement – has affected public perceptions of its impartiality and competence. Under Emergency
Regulations, the powers of the Supreme Court have been substantially curtailed both de jure and de facto.
15. With respect to the lower judiciary, the Supreme Court gave effect to the constitutional mandate for
separation of the lower judiciary in its landmark Masdar Hossain v Bangladesh5 judgment in 1999. Although
two successive elected governments failed to comply with the Court 12-point directives, the Caretaker
Government in January 2007 ultimately adopted the necessary legislation. 6 Thus, the magistracy – the front
lines of the criminal justice system – was finally separated into judicial and executive branches, in the face of
vocal opposition from vested interests within the bureaucracy. More recently, civil courts were also
established in the CHT. Serious concerns remain regarding the extent of effective separation of the lower
judiciary, in particular the lack of adequate resources and capacity building, and reports of continuing
interference by the executive, despite important progress having been made in putting in place the legal and
institutional framework. The retention of key functions relating to appointments and postings with the
executive (in particular the Ministry of Law) requires urgent attention.
16. Despite promulgation of the National Human Rights Commission Act 2007, a national human rights
institution has not been started functioning to date. Human rights organisations have questioned the capacity
of the proposed Commission to function as an effective human rights watchdog, noting the executive
predominance in the composition of the selection committee; the lack of any special measures to ensure
diversity within the Commission; the Commission’s limited jurisdiction to investigate cases already pending
before a Court, Ombudsman or Administrative Tribunal, and its limited powers to ensure state compliance
with its recommendations and directives. Despite express constitutional and legislative provisions, the office
of the Ombudsman has not been established to date.
17. Law Enforcement Agencies: Continuing concerns regarding executive interference with the police, as
well as issues regarding lack of efficiency and effectiveness laid the ground for the Government’s Police
Reform Programme (in partnership between the Ministry of Home Affairs, Bangladesh Police, UNDP and

4
Although a cross-section of the women’s movement challenged this law as being unconstitutional, and failing to further substantive gender equality,
the Supreme Court upheld the relevant laws. See Human Rights in Bangladesh, ASK, Dhaka 2004; Human Rights in Bangladesh, ASK, Dhaka 2005.
5
Hossain, a subordinate court judge, had contended that since judges and magistrates were part of the judiciary, they should not be controlled under
laws regulating the civil service. The Appellate Division upheld the High Court’s judgment in favour of Hossain (Secretary, Ministry of Finance v
Masdar Hossain 2000 BLD (AD) 104).
6
This comprised the Bangladesh Judicial Service Pay Commission Rules 2007, the Bangladesh Judicial Service (Service Constitution, Composition,
Recruitment Suspension, Dismissal and Removal) Rules 2007 and the Bangladesh Judicial Service (Posting, Promotion, Leave, Control, Discipline and
other Service Condition) Rules 2007 as well as the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Ordinance 2007 (the Judicial Service Commission Rules
2002 having been adopted earlier).
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DFID).The Programme is focused on key areas of access to justice; including crime prevention,
investigations, police operations and prosecutions; human resource management and training; and, future
directions, strategic capacity and oversight. Other initiatives taken have been to prepare a Draft Bangladesh
Police Ordinance 2007, to replace the Police Act of 1861; to establish two Forensic Laboratories in Dhaka and
Khulna; to establish ‘model’ police stations; to prepare and distribute gender guidelines to hold police
trainings and form a network of women police personnel; a victim support centre is also anticipated.
III. PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ON THE GROUND
18. The State of Emergency and the ‘Reform Process’: Many citizens, as well as the media and civil
society organisations, greeted the initial formation of the interim Caretaker Government on 11 January 2007
with a sense of relief and even of hope. This initial welcome, which was barely dented by the Proclamation of
Emergency, reflected widespread and profound disillusionment and despair at the increasingly intense conflict
between the two leading political alliances, led respectively by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the
Awami League, which had virtually brought the country to a standstill. The spiraling corruption and abuse of
power under the BNP-Jamaat led Government, in office until October 2006, and its resistance to relinquishing
power to the Caretaker Government, had further exacerbated the tensions. From the outset, the CTG’s stated
political agenda was to create conditions that would enable the holding of free and fair elections, and to hand
over power to a democratically elected government regime. To this end, it undertook a highly publicized anti-
corruption drive during which many previously ‘untouchable’ political and business figures were arrested.
The Government also initiated a series of institutional reforms, welcomed by citizens’ groups and the media:
these included the production of a more comprehensive and inclusive voter list, re-constituting and then
reforming three institutions which had largely lost all credibility due to their incapacity, incompetence in
discharging their mandate in accordance with law and their overt bias to the earlier ruling regime, namely the
Election Commission (EC), the Public Service Commission, and the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC).
Significant changes were also made to the Attorney General’s Office, with many persons who had enjoyed
partisan appointments resigning after serious criticisms of their roles while in office. Two years on, and
following an increasingly unwieldy and ineffective ‘anti-corruption drive’ in which powerful political actors
who had enjoyed virtual impunity during their years in office appear able to evade accountability, and with
issues such as the handling of August 2007 student protests at Dhaka University, sharp rises in food prices and
other essentials, highly publicized cases of over-reach by intelligence agencies, among other things, the
CTG’s standing appears considerably diminished. Human rights abuses continue to occur, largely unchecked
and unredressed, and accountability for both past and present abuses remains difficult to initiate or achieve.
19. Continuing Impunity: The pervasive culture of impunity experienced in Bangladesh, greatly exacerbated
during the current period of Emergency, may be traced to 1971, when major crimes of international concern
such as genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression took millions of lives, but
went unpunished. Post-independence, no coherent mechanism of accountability was put in place and
legislation enacted separated perpetrators into two groups, local collaborators and military perpetrators.
Ultimately, due to lack of resources, capacity and international pressure, credible investigation or prosecutions
could not be held, resulting in impunity for international crimes. Impunity now permeates the justice system,
in the absence of functioning democratic accountability. Those in power have abused office and authority
without regard to law, with little or no consequence. Serious crimes have remained unresolved and the judicial
system as well as other institutions have failed, with a few significant exceptions, to end impunity. Recent
attempts to challenge this culture and enforce the law against persons hitherto considered ‘untouchable’ and
‘above the law’ are themselves faltering.
20. Right to life, liberty and security of the person: In both the pre- and post-Emergency periods, continued
reports of extra judicial killings by law enforcing agencies, custodial death and torture, including rape, and
lack of any public reports of investigation and prosecution of those responsible demonstrate the vulnerability
of the right to life of Bangladeshi citizens (see Annex 4 for statistics). In the vast majority of instances, the
state failed to publish any information regarding actions taken to investigate, prosecute or punish
those responsible for such killings.
21. Violent attacks, reportedly led by religious extremist groups with virtual impunity for several years, had
severely curtailed the right to life, liberty and security of persons. During the reporting period, bomb blasts
had targeted court premises, progressive cultural gatherings, cinema halls, religious shrines, and political
gatherings. A reported total of 27 major incidents of bomb and grenade attack during 1999-2005 claimed the
lives of 171 people and wounded 1773 persons. While leaders of the Jamaat e Mujahideen Bangladesh were
tried and executed following confessions of their involvement in several of these incidents, the hurried manner
of their execution and the denial of their requests to speak publicly about their involvement, gave rise to

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public concerns regarding the transparency of the process and continues to fuel speculation about the nature
and source of patronage enjoyed by such groups, to allow them to operate beyond the law for such prolonged
periods.
22. Prolonged delays continue to plague efforts to bring to account persons accused of the assassination of
high-profile politicians and the targeted killings of professionals including teachers and journalists (including
the murder of the late president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members in August 1975, the killing
of the former Prime Minister and three other Ministers in Dhaka Central Jail in November 1975, the killing of
the former Finance Minister Shah AMS Kibria in a grenade attack, the killing of Professor Taher of Rajshahi,
and the killing of BBC stringer Manik Saha). These are the instances of the deep-rooted and pervasive culture
of impunity, which has been steadily reinforced with the ongoing failure to investigate, prosecute and punish
those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity during the 1971 war of liberation.
23. Incidents of arbitrary arrest and detention, as well as the reported ‘mass arrests’ continued to occur during
the reporting period. Under Emergency Rules, the law enforcing agencies powers of arrest, including to arrest
without warrant – even on nothing more than suspicion of a ‘prejudicial act’ – combined with the restrictions
on the right to seek bail in the case of any offence falling within the ambit of the Emergency Rules, severely
curtailed the right to liberty, with a disproportionate impact on the poor and marginalized who were unable to
access fast-track procedures for relief and redress in the superior courts, available to many of the ‘VIP’
accused implicated in corruption cases. ASK documentation noted that in 2006, 47,235 persons were victims
of mass arrest while from 26 May 2008-17 June 2008, the joint forces arrested some 23,949 persons .
24. Freedom of expression: Repression and harassment of journalists from both state and non-state actors are
commonplace. Changes in the patterns of harassment are discernible during the reporting period. Under the
BNP-led Government, these took forms both legal and extra-legal. At the most extreme, journalists known for
their reporting on the corruption or abuse of power by partisan political groups or powerful economic interests
faced murder by unknown actors: the most well-known cases, which are still at the trial stage, include the
killing of Manik Saha, BBC stringer, on 15 January 2004, and Humayun Kabir Balu in 2004. In contrast,
other journalists faced criminal defamation proceedings throughout 2005-2006.
25. The EPR contain wide-ranging provisions that restrict freedom of expression. Despite assurances by the
Caretaker Government that these would not be applied, the reported resort to covert threats has resulted in
extensive self-censorship across the print and broadcast media. The EPR also permit the use of intercepted
communications, like previous legislation, the Bangladesh Telecommunications (Amendment) Act 2006.
26. In 2007, journalists faced arbitrary arrest and custodial torture, in some cases without any formal charge,
including Tasnim Khalil, a Dhaka-based freelance journalist, and Jahangir Alam Akash of Rajshahi, One of
the most chilling instances of censorship during the Emergency involved the threat of cancellation of the
declaration of a newspaper, and public apologies by its Editors to Islamists, following publication of a cartoon
already in circulation. The freelance cartoonist, Arifur Rahman, 23, was arrested on 18 September, 2007,
following demonstrations on the streets by Islamist groups and imprisoned for almost six months before being
acquitted.
27. Incidents of physical assault on the journalists have been common both pre- and post-Emergency. In 2005,
four journalists were killed, 163 received death threats, and 214 faced threats, harassments and attack by
different actors including law enforcing agencies and terrorists. In 2006, four journalists were killed, 48
received death threats, two faced attempted kidnapping, 80 received threats/harassed by law enforcing
agencies and 97 by terrorists. In 2007, three were killed, 56 received threats to life, 239 faced harassment. In
January-June 2008, eight journalists faced death threats and 47 reportedly experienced harassment.
28. The autonomy of state run Radio and Television has not been secured by any government, despite
longstanding public demands. However, many private channels and newspapers were established in the period
prior to 2007 – in many cases without any visible compliance with relevant regulations, and through clear
distribution of patronage by the then ruling party – and since then several have faced closure, or transfer of
management, reportedly due to reduction of funding sources (Ajker Kagoj), or other reasons (CSB News).
29. Freedom of association and peaceful assembly: Both before and during the Emergency, the BNP-led
Government and later the Caretaker Government resorted to the practice of ‘mass arrests’ in an apparent bid to
prevent rallies and demonstrations by opposition parties. In 2005, the police arrested hundreds of persons on
the eve of scheduled rallies, ‘long marches’ or ‘sieges of Dhaka city’ announced by the Awami League-led
Fourteen Party Alliance. The resulting arrests affected both political activists and other citizens. Another
police practice, of arresting individuals in relation to complaints which name thousands of ‘un-named people’
as the accused, utilized earlier has also been frequently resorted to by the current Government, to restrict
freedom of assembly or following public protests (as in August 2007).
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30. As noted below, in addition to political party members, workers protesting non-payment of arrears, or the
closure of jute mills, as well as farmers demonstrating for distribution of fertilizer have also faced brutal
violence from the law-enforcing agencies. In contrast, Islamist groups such as Hizbut Tahrir demonstrating in
2007 - in clear violation of the Emergency Regulations – and inciting violence and hatred against journalists,
or condemning the National Women’s Policy, have been able to hold public demonstrations without any
interference; a similar latitude has been given to other Islamist groups such as the Jamaat e Islami holding
rallies in 2008 on release of their leaders following arrest on charges of corruption.
31. Rights to freedom of association were often restricted under the previous Government, with Government
refusing to release funds to several prominent NGOs (such as Proshika, PRIP Trust, BNPS), or obstructing
their operations through implicating their management and staff in false criminal cases, and subjecting them to
prolonged persecution. Under the Emergency, while several NGOs have continued to face such threats, others
have faced direct interference in the form of arbitrary arrest and detention, or threats of arrest, of their
management The express prohibitions under the Emergency Regulations have also severely hampered
political activities across the country, as have widespread arrests of political activists, many on charges of
corruption.
32. Right to Food: The occurrences of two consecutive floods and the SIDR cyclone in 2007 severely
affected crops in the Northern and Southern belts, and the ensuing scarcity of food combined with continuing
price hikes of food commodities created intolerable burdens on the majority of people. Existing government
programmes such as Food for Work, Vulnerable Group Development, Food for Education proved inadequate
to the need. Further, and despite the ‘anti-corruption drive’ continuing corruption by state agents acted as a
major constraint to the implementation of such programmes. No long or medium term strategies have been
adopted as yet to address the causes of Monga (seasonal food crisis). There are also concerns regarding the
weak enforcement of laws to ensure safety and non-adulteration of food.
33. Right to Shelter: Notwithstanding existing constitutional and international obligations to prevent forced
evictions, as well as High Court judgments directing the Government to provide for proper notice and
rehabilitation measures before displacement, there have been repeated instances of slum demolition every
year. According to ASK documentation, during the period of 2003-2006, 14333 families were evicted from 17
slums. In the immediate aftermath of the promulgation of Emergency, from January 2007-February 27 2007
alone, 8890 families from 21 slums were made shelter-less through evictions. Rights organisations and the
media protested forced evictions and following their continuous advocacy, the Government set up a high-level
Slum Rehabilitation Committee to identify specific lands and develop a scheme for resettlement; however the
scheme is limited in scope, and appears to have made little progress to date. Existing rehabilitation schemes
are also not being monitored effectively, with the resulting risk that low cost housing targeted for slum
dwellers may be taken over by others.
34. Right to Livelihood: In addition to eviction drives on slums, the Caretaker Government has
indiscriminately evicted hawkers from pavements and roadsides, particularly at the beginning of 2007.
Although the Dhaka City Corporation issued an urgent notification on 11 October 2007 declaring 20 sites to
be made available for holiday markets for evicted hawkers, there was no systematic attempt to put in place
any alternative rehabilitation measures.
35. Women’s Rights: The continued primacy of personal laws based on religion in matters of inheritance,
marriage, divorce, maintenance and child custody and adoption discriminates against women in respect of
rights within the family. Citizenship laws also discriminate on their face against women. De facto
discrimination in opportunities for education and employment as well as access to resources and to services,
in particular healthcare, further impose various barriers on women in exercising their rights. Women face
discrimination both in public and private spheres. Violence - public and private - continues to be a significant
feature of the everyday experience of many Bangladeshi women. The statistics presented below take into
account only those incidents that have been reported in the media. The actual figures for sexual assault, rape
and domestic violence are undoubtedly higher, not least because a widespread culture of intimidation inhibits
reporting. Moreover, in cases involving the transgression of ‘sexual honour,’ the fear of social stigmatization
discourages making such incidents public.( See Annex 4.1 for comparative statistics on Violence Against
Women)
36. During the reporting period, Government initiatives on ensuring women’s rights included dialogue
towards framing a law on domestic violence, review of PRSP guidelines on gender, and declaration of a
revised National Women Development Policy. Continuing concerns related to the state’s failure to ensure
effective investigation, prosecution and punishment of those including private actors responsible for acts of
violence against women, in particular through the unauthorized tribunals pronouncing and executing illegal
penalties in the form of ‘fatwas’.
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37. Child Rights: Numerous challenges remain in ensuring child rights. One of the most serious is the
pervasiveness of child labour. Under applicable laws the age bar for prohibition of child labour varies from 14
to 18 years and is not effectively enforced. In practice, one in every eight children is in the country is a
working child.7 Nearly one-fifth of children from slum and tribal areas are engaged as child labour to earn a
livelihood for themselves and their families. A quarter of children engaged in child labour do not attend
schools.8 Existing estimates also suggest that 149,000 children are engaged in five hazardous industries –
welding, auto-workshops, road transport, battery recharging and recycling. Between the ages of 5 and 14 years
approximately 6.6 million children are engaged in labour force in the country. 9
38. Prisoners’ Rights: Prisoners’ rights are mostly disregarded in practice, despite detailed legal safeguards,
with most persons incarcerated in unsafe, overcrowded cells with inadequate ventilation or sanitation.
Reportedly, the number of prisoners in November 2006 was 66,778, two and a half times in excess of the total
capacity. Among them, the number of women prisoners was 2,219 against a capacity of 1,131 10. Continued
reports of children being held in jails, as well as of foreign prisoners being detained even beyond the expiry of
their sentences, and of persons with mental illness being imprisoned for prolonged periods, as well as under-
trial prisoners lacking legal aid resulted in repeated directives from the High Court Division following public
interest litigation by human rights organisations, but little systematic action was taken to address these issues
or release the persons affected.
39. Workers’ Rights: Despite national and international obligations to protect workers’ rights, including
under the new Labour Code 2006, lax implementation and a flawed monitoring mechanism result in frequent
violations. Significantly, current labour legislation does not cover workers in the informal sector, or those who
are employed in domestic work.
40.The most common violations in the industrial sector include failure to provide formal appointment letters,
delays in payment of wages, failure to pay for overtime hours, failure to provide maternity leave and
inadequate childcare facilities. In recent years, employer negligence has resulted in numerous workplace
injuries and deaths (see Table below). Recent incidents which remain without legal redress include the
burning to death on 7 January, 2005, of 23 workers of Shaan Knitting and Processing Limited at Godnail,
Narayangonj, after a factory fire; 11 the 11 April, 2005, collapse of the building that housed Spectrum Sweater
Industries in Polashbari, Savar killing sixty four workers, and injuring approximately 80; 12 and the 23
February 2006 fire in KTS Textile and Garments Ltd. in Chittagong, in which 65 workers died and over 150
were injured.13 (Annex 4.2, statistics on Workplace Deaths)
41. The rights to assembly and to association are frequently flouted, and the use of violence and intimidation
by law-enforcing agencies to suppress worker protests is not uncommon (see box). Under the State of
Emergency, the express prohibition on public meetings and demonstrations, and on trade union activities, has
further hampered an already repressive climate for the enforcement of labour rights. Thus, on 20 May 2007, a
garment worker, Asma Akhtar, 25, from Patuakhali, of Fortuna Apparels Ltd., was killed when police opened
fire on workers demonstrating for payment of overtime arrears and monthly salaries in front of their factory in
Gazipur.14 On 9 August, 2007 the police baton-charged 600 workers who had been demanding arrears for over
three weeks at Amin Jute Mills in Chittagong, and reportedly assaulted ten workers, and arrested 18 persons,
including five injured workers. Reportedly many of those injured stayed decided to forgo medical treatment at
government run facilities for fear of arrested. 15.
42. Privatization policies pursued by the government, as part of World Bank and IMF conditionalities, have
led to the closure of many state owned jute mills. In 2002, 30,000 workers were retrenched following the
closure of Adamjee Jute Mills. In 2007, the four jute mills in Khulna area were closed down with hundreds of
workers losing their jobs. The process of retrenchment has been brutal with retrenched workers rarely
adequately compensated, and in some instances workers demanding arrears facing violence from the police.
No steps have been taken to retrain or place them elsewhere.
7
UNICEF, 2007
8
UNICEF, 2007.
9
The Global March against Child Labour, 2007.
10
ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh 2005, ASK, Dhaka 2006.
11
Ibid.
12
Ibid.
13
ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh 2006, ASK Dhaka, 2007.
14
ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh 2007, www.askbd.org.
15
Ibid
7 of 10
43. Bangladeshi migrant workers, who are currently employed in 13 countries of the Middle East and South
East Asia, as well as in Europe and North America, are subjected to multiple rights violations. At the pre-
departure stage, local recruiting agencies over-charge them for fares, medical tests, visa fees and other levies,
and deny them information regarding their terms of employment. In the countries of employment, they are
reportedly underpaid, forced to work long hours in hazardous conditions, compelled to live in poor housing
and often vulnerable to violence, including sexual harassment, and their mobility restricted, with passports
often retained by employers. Undocumented workers are especially vulnerable to sudden deportation.
44. Currently, Bangladesh’s bilateral agreements with employing countries provide little protection for
workers. Existing laws, such as the Emigration Ordinance of 1982 and its Rules 2002 are not fully enforced;
they require further revision to incorporate a worker’s rights perspective. Existing mechanisms for protection
of migrant workers’ rights, such as the Ministry of Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment or the
Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (mandated to regulate recruiting agencies and facilitate
movement of migrant workers) are weak in their operations, and there is little accountability of recruiting
agencies for violation of laws or abusive practices. Bangladeshi consular officials also lack capacity and
resources and have been largely ineffective in protecting migrant workers’ rights.

45. Discrimination on grounds of language: A section of the Bihari Urdu speaking community, which has
had a presence in the territories now comprising Bangladesh for six decades, has persistently demanded
citizenship rights, and has finally succeeded in obtaining the right to be enrolled as voters following a
landmark High Court judgment. However, concerns remain over whether voting rights and citizenship rights
would in turn cause new difficulties, with residents of the camps which they have inhabited as stateless
persons for so many years, facing a new threat of eviction. The recent crackdown on illegal property by the
Caretaker Government had generated a new set of concerns as some ‘Bihari’ communities around the country
have already felt the brunt of these efforts, posing a new challenge for integration with dignity. The
community also faces discrimination with regard to access to employment, education and healthcare as well as
in relation to language.
46. Discrimination on grounds of Race or Ethnicity: The estimated of 2.5-3 million16 indigenous peoples of
Bangladesh, popularly known as Adivasis (in the plains) and ‘Paharis’ (in the Chittagong Hill Tracts)
constitute at least 45 distinct ethnic and linguistic groups, and face continuing discrimination in terms ongoing
land encroachment and eviction, often in the name of development (eco-parks, plantations, construction of
infrastructure), discrimination in access to justice and protection of the law.
47. Recent examples of land-grabbing in the plains include the April 2006 incident in which 10 Khasi families
of South Shahbajpur union Baralekha upazila, Moulvibazar district, were reportedly induced to sign false
documents by a local tea estate authority that resulted in their being deprived of their homesteads and betel
leaf gardens. In another incident, in November 2007, about 50 indigenous Oraon families of Kazipara village,
Dibar union, Patnitala upazila, Naogaon district faced an attack by local Bengalis, resulting in 17 houses being
burnt to ashes and 15 Oraons including women facing severe injuries. Most recently in April 2008, following
an arson attack in Sajek union, under Baghaichari upazila Rangamati district in the CHT, a number of Pahari
homes were burnt to the ground. No public inquiries have as yet been held into the causes of any of these
incidents nor have any effective remedies been provided.
48. In several cases, those who have sought to resist such land expropriation have risked arrest, ill-treatment
and death. For example, Rang Lai Mro, an elected local government official and community leader as well as
respected human rights defender, from Bandarban District, CHT, was allegedly falsely implicated in a
criminal case, arrested and ill-treated, and is currently imprisoned following his attempt to draw public
attention to one such case. Earlier, Piren Snal of the Garo community was fired upon by police in 03 January
2004 while protesting the development of an eco-park; no reparations have been made as yet in this case.
Most recently, Cholesh Richil, a local leader of the Garo community, died reportedly following custodial
torture by the security forces after being arrested on 18 March 2007. The judicial inquiry commission
established in the face of public condemnation by human rights groups has not as yet published its report.
49. During the period of Emergency, human rights defenders active in the CHT have faced particular
difficulties in conducting their operations, with several being targeted for arrest and questioning in a form of
apparent racial profiling following the abduction of a donor agency official in the area. In addition, prominent
members of political parties primarily comprised of indigenous peoples of the CHT such as the JSS and the
UPDF have also faced arrest and detention or the threat of imprisonment.
50. The 1997 Chittagong Hill Tracts Accord signed between the Government of Bangladesh and the Parbattya
16
According to 1991 Bangladesh Census, Indigenous population is 1.2 million, which many indigenous activist believe to be a gross under-estimation.
8 of 10
Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti (PCJSS) that ended the twenty year insurgency in the south-western region
which is home to over thirteen indigenous communities (Adivasis) has now entered its eleventh year with few
signs of implementation. Despite promises by the current Caretaker Government, the Land Disputes
Resolution Commission has not yet been activated, pending demands for amendment of the enabling law.
While a few “temporary camps” of the security forces (Army, BDR, Armed Police Battalions) have been
withdrawn from the area, the majority remain. Further, full control of local civil and police administration to
the three Hill District Councils has yet to take place. 17
51. Religious Discrimination: Discrimination against religious minorities continues to be pervasive in the form
of very limited representation in public employment or office, as well as in terms of educational opportunities.
There have also been a number of incidents of interference with the practice of their religion by certain groups.
For example, during 2004-2005, under the BNP-Jamaat Government, Islamist groups attacked individuals and
places of worship (in Nakhalpara, Dhaka; Chawk Bazar, Chittagong; Nirala, Khulna, Bogra) of the Ahmadiya
community. In one instance, the police reportedly responded to the demand of the Islamist groups and hung a
signboard which read: “This is not a mosque, it is a Kadiani Place of Worship. No Muslim should be deceived
into presuming this to be a mosque”. The then Government failed to take any action against those responsible,
and in several instances member of civil society gathered to protect the buildings concerned. On 8 January 2004,
the Government (Ministry of Home) imposed a ban on certain publications of the Ahmadiya Muslim Jamaat
Bangladesh, following on a demand by in Islamist groups campaigning for the Ahmadiya groups. Following
public interest litigation by several human rights groups, the High Court stayed the operation of the ban.
52. Religious and ethnic minorities have faced the most severe discrimination in the form of expropriation of
their lands from 1965 through abuse and arbitrary application of the Enemy Property Act 1965/Vested Property
Act 1974. Following widespread condemnation and studies identifying its discriminatory impact, the Vested
Property Restoration Act 2001 provided for the Government to publish the lists of all ‘vested property’ within
18 months. However, this time limit was removed by the then Government in 2002 and as a result the Act
remains a powerful weapon against minorities. A 2006 Study estimated that from 1965 to 2006 almost
1,200,000 Hindu households lost about 2,600,000 acres land and other movable properties as a result, among
whom about 200,000 Hindu households lost their land between the year 2001 to 2006. 18 A recent initiative to
further amend this Act has been criticized by human rights organizations including ASK, BLAST, Nijera Kori
and ALRD as likely to create further complications and obstacles to restoration of such property.
53. Caste-based Discrimination: Despite the constitutional prohibition on caste-based discrimination, the
day-to-day lives of Dalits in Bangladesh – among both Hindu and Muslim communities -- still consists of
subjection to segregation, exploitation, restrictions on livelihoods and access to services, land grabbing,
destruction of houses, intimidation, ongoing violence, and sometimes rape and murder. Considered ‘unclean’,
the Dalits are compelled to live set apart from other so-called ‘clean’ groups in their own neighborhoods.
They face regular denial of access to public spaces, including mosques, temples, shops and restaurants.
54. Dalits also face discrimination and lack of access to basic economic and social rights. Over 60 per cent of
Dalits in Bangladesh are reportedly deprived of education, and thus trapped them in a cycle of poverty and
exploitation. Those able to find their way into Bangladesh’s education system in turn often face
discriminatory behaviour from students and school administrators. Many young Dalits thus discontinue their
education well before graduation thus losing any possibility of finding secure employment. Many Dalits face a
crisis regarding shelter. Social, economic and religious pressures coupled with systematic non-enforcement of
the law result in Bangladesh’s Dalits being pushed to the limits of the cities, living precariously on the sides of
railroads or in reeking, garbage-ridden, densely populated state-sanctioned housing “colonies” (30 such in
Dhaka alone). A symptom of the deplorable quality of colony life is the number of Dalit people, particularly
children, who die annually from ailments, including malnutrition, diarrhea, typhoid, cholera, tuberculosis, and
pneumonia, otherwise by and large treatable from a simple visit to a hospital or doctor. The wider population’s
perception of Dalits is indeed ‘of a different kind’; a perception in turn de facto sanctioned by the state.19
55. Disability-based Discrimination: Significant measures to recognize and further the rights of persons with
disabilities include the establishment of 46 focal points in ministries and departments on disability issues,
restructuring of the National Disability and Development Foundation (NDDF) as an autonomous body, and
the separate identification in the electoral roll of voters with disabilities, by including related information in

17
"Demand for full implementation of CHT accord", Shantimoy Chakma, Daily Star, 2 December, 2007; "Shantu Larma meets with Iftekhar Ahmed
Chowdhury about implementation of Peace Accord", Samokal, 30 March, 2007.
18
Dr. Abul Barkat, An Inquiry into the Causes and Consequences of Deprivation of Hindu Minorities in Bangladesh through the Vested Property Act,
ALRD, Dhaka 2006.
19
This section is drawn from a regional study on caste-based discrimination in South Asia by the Indian Institute of Dalit Studies (IIDS) in association
with IDSN, 2008, and from the country study on Bangladesh by Iftekhar Uddin Chowdhury.
9 of 10
the voter registration forms, and taking special measures to facilitate registration and issuance of ID cards,
following home visits by enumerators.
56. Continuing concerns include the continued application of discriminatory laws (such as the Lunacy Act
1912 which results in gross violations of the rights of persons with intellectual disabilities and persons with
mental illness), the lack of enforcement of laws and to activate existing mechanisms, to deliver services and
change perceptions and attitudes in order to address the practical realities of the lives of people with
disabilities and the continued focus of the Ministry of Social Welfare on disability issues (instead of
mainstreaming the issue across Government). The lack of accurate national data on the total number of
persons with disabilities and on different areas of disability-based discrimination prevent in-depth analysis
and targeted planning. Particular concerns relate to existing employment restrictions (eg on physical fitness
requirements for assistant judges), 20 the failure to comply with existing quotas (eg for primary school
recruitment) and the absence of affirmative action (10% job quotas in the public sector have been demanded
by disability rights advocates).
57. Lack of access to mainstream primary education affects some 96 percent of children with disabilities; 21 the
very limited numbers of special schools operated by the Government (Department of Social Services)
reportedly do not maintain standards and are not regulated by the Ministry of Education. 22 There is no
planning or provision for secondary school education for persons with disabilities. Lack of access to buildings
remains a serious issue, due to non-compliance with existing laws (such as the Building Construction Rules
1996 and the Dhaka Mohanagar Building Construction Rules 2006 which require ramps in both public and
private buildings).
58. Access to justice is often obstructed for persons with disabilities, leaving them with little remedy in cases
of violence against the person or property: for example, in 2006, some 69 persons, mostly women, were
reportedly victims of murder, rape, sexual harassment, dowry, torture, cheating, kidnapping, extortion,
eviction and property grabbing and no statistics were available on whether such cases had been properly
investigated or prosecuted.23 Persons with disabilities are denied equal protection of the law, as there are no
practical arrangements take evidence from persons with hearing difficulties, intellectual difficulties or those
who are visually challenged, neither is Bangla Sign language permitted to be used.
IV. COOPERATION WITH HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS
59. Cooperation with treaty bodies: Bangladesh is currently due to submit twelve separate reports to various
treaty monitoring bodies (including its initial reports to the Human Rights Committee, CESCR and the CAT
Committee). (See Annex 5, reports from Bangladesh submitted to and considered by Treaty Monitoring
Bodies).
60. Bangladesh has so far made limited progress in implementing recommendations of the treaty bodies. With
regards to the CERD Committee recommendations, little progress has been made on implementation of the
CHT in the reporting period. While the current Government has complied with a High Court judgment to
establish civil courts in the CHT, much remains to be done in practice to ensure equal protection of the law
without discrimination on grounds of race and ethnicity or language. With regard to the 2004 CEDAW
Committee’s recommendations, there have been no steps taken towards withdrawal of reservations to
CEDAW. Further, the draft citizenship law eliminates gender-discrimination only regarding transmission of
nationality to children, and not to spouses; further, no action was taken by the last elected Government or the
present one to enact the law to date. Again, despite a dialogue between the current Government and women’s
rights groups on the need for a law on domestic violence, there has been no progress yet on framing a law, in
this regard, or in respect of reform of gender-discriminatory personal laws. With regard to the 2003 CRC
Committee recommendations, the age of minimum criminal responsibility has been raised from seven to nine,
but no steps have been taken to date to fix a minimum age for admission to employment, in line with
internationally accepted standards, or as noted earlier, to amend legislation to enable transmission of
citizenship without gender-discrimination, to prohibit corporal punishment, or to adopt national refugee
legislation and accede to the Refugee Convention, or to establish a child-sensitive complaints system. (See
Annex 6 for Recent Concluding Comments on Bangladesh).
61. Co-operation with Special Procedures: Bangladesh generally has not co-operated effectively with the
UN Special Procedures on human rights. Thus within the reporting period only the Special Rapporteur on the

20
Job advertisement for Assistant Judges issued by the Judicial Service Commission, Prothom Alo, 2 August 2007.
21
See ESTEEM II project study of the Primary and Mass Education Department, Ministry of Education, Government of Bangladesh, 2002.
22
ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh 2006, ASK, Dhaka, 2007, page 203.
23
ASK, Human Rights in Bangladesh 2006, ASK, Dhaka, 2007, page 203.
10 of 10
Right to Food (2007) has visited Bangladesh, while others have not yet received any response to their request
for visits (see Annex 7, Special Procedures and Bangladesh).

*****

Annex-1

Member Organizations of the Forum

1. Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), Secretariat

2. Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF)
3. Bangladesh Mohila Parishad (BMP)
4. Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS)
5. Bangladesh Legal Aid & Services Trust (BLAST)
6. Bangladesh Dalit and Excluded Rights Movement (BDERM)
7. Centre for Rehabilitation of Torture Survivors (CRTS)
8. D.Net (Development Research Network)
9. Karmojibi Nari (KN)
10. Nagorik Uddyog
11. Nari Uddoyog Kendra (NUK)
12. Nijera Kori
13. Nari Pokkho
14. National Forum of Organizations working with the Disabled (NFOWD)
15. Research and Development Collective (RDC)
16. Steps Towards Development (Steps)
17. Transparency International Bangladesh (TI-B)

The UPR Report has been prepared on behalf of the Members by its Secretariat at Ain o Salish
Kendra, with editing by Ms Sara Hossain, and contributions by Dr. Meghna Guhathakurta, Zakir
Hossain, Dr. Hameeda Hossain, Dr. Rayhan Rashid, Dr. Dina Siddiqi, Shirin Sultana, Dr. Nowrin
Tamanna and Dr. Ahmed Ziauddin. The Editorial Team included Mr Iftequaruzzman, Dr Mesbah
Kamal and Ms Sultana Kamal.

11 of 10

List of Bangladesh’s Ratification of International Human Rights Treaties
Core international human
rights treaties
ICERD
ICESCR
ICCPR
Optional Protocol to ICCPR
(Individual complaints)
Second Optional Protocol to
ICCPR
(abolishing death penalty)
CEDAW
Optional Protocol to
CEDAW
CAT
Optional Protocol to CAT
(allowing in-country
inspections of places of
detention)
CRC
OP-CRC-AC
OP-CRC-SC
Convention on the Rights of
persons with Disabilities
Optional Protocol (OP) to the
Convention on the Rights of
persons with Disabilities
Annex-2
Ratification / Declaration/reservations
Accession
(a)/succession
11 June 1979 (a) 
5 October 1998 (a)  Declarations:
Article 1(Right of self determination), 2(state obligations to
guarantee the rights enunciated in the Covenant),3(Equality
of men and women), 7(the right to the enjoyment of just and
favourable conditions of work), 8 (The right of trade unions)
10(Right to Family and protection of mother and child) and
13 (the right of everyone to education)
6 September 2000 (a) Declarations:
Article 10(prisoners’ rights), 11(prohibition of imprisonment
merely on the ground of inability to fulfil a contractual
obligation).,and 14(safeguard as to trial and punishment)
Reservation:
Article 14 (no trial in absentia)
Not yet ratified
Not yet ratified
6 November 1984 (a)  Reservation:
Articles 2 (Principle of non discrimination and elimination of
discrimination against women and 16 (1)(c) (Elimination of
discrimination against women in all matters relating to
marriage and family relations, in particular the same rights
and responsibilities during marriage and its dissolution)
6 September 2000 Declaration
Article 10 (1) (Regarding obligations under Articles 8 and 9
of the Optional Protocol – inquiry procedure)
5 October 1998 (a) Reservation:
Article 14 Para 1 right to fair and adequate compensation to
the victim of torture
Not yet ratified
3 August 1990  Reservations
Article 14(1)- the right of the child to freedom of thought,
conscience and religion and article 21- the adoption of a
child
6 September 2000  Declaration:
Article 3 (2)- minimum age for the recruitment of armed
forces
6 September 2000 
30 November 2007(R)
Not yet ratified
12 of 10
CMW 7 October 1998
(Signed) – not yet
ratified
Convention for the Protection Not yet ratified
of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance
Rome Statute of the 16 September 1999
International Criminal Court (signed)
Convention on the Prevention 5 October1998 (a)
and Punishment of the Crime
of Genocide
Four Geneva Conventions and 4 April 1972 (s)
their protocols
Protocol 1 to the Geneva 8 September 1980 (a)
Conventions
Protocol 11 to the Geneva 8 September 1980 (a)
Conventions
ILO Conventions Nos State party to all these
29,87,98,100,105, 107, 11 conventions
Convention on the Political 5 October 1998
Rights of Women, 1953
Convention on Consent to 5 October 1998
Marriage, Minimum Age for
Marriage and Registration of
Marriages, 1962
Convention for the 11 January 1985 (a)
Suppression of the Traffic in
Persons and of the
Exploitation of the
Prostitution of Others, 1950
Slavery Convention, 1926 and 7 January 1985
subsequent Protocols
UNESCO Convention against Not yet ratified
Discrimination in Education,
1960
Convention Relating to the Not yet ratified
Status of Refugees, 1951
ILO Convention No. 138 Not yet ratified

ICERD International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

ICESCR International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
ICCPR International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
CAT Convention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child
OP-CRC-AC Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed
conflict
OP-CRC-SC Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children child prostitution
and child pornography
CMW International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families

13 of 10
 Annex-3

Voluntary Pledges made by Bangladesh prior to the Human Rights Council Election 2006

If elected to the Human Rights Council, Bangladesh would:

I. Extend its fullest cooperation to the Council in its work of the promotion and protection of all
human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction of any kind and in a fair and equal
manner.
II. Support the Council in its work guided by the principles of universality, impartiality, objectivity
and non-selectivity, constructive international dialogue and cooperation.
III. Emphasize on meaningful dialogue and cooperation with the Member States, as well as on
advisory services, technical assistance and capacity building required to fulfill their human rights
obligations.
IV. Actively participate in the Council’s work to review and rationalize and improve the
Commission’s mandates, mechanisms, functions and responsibilities.
V. Remain prepared to be reviewed under the universal periodic review mechanism during its tenure
in the Council under terms, conditions and modalities to be developed by the Council.
VI. Continue its journey towards development of its entire people with particular attention to
empowerment of women and other vulnerable sections of the population, primarily through the
application of indigenous concepts.
VII. Strengthen its fight against corruption and also against terrorism. She would continue to ensure
independence of the Anti-Corruption Commission.
VIII. Intensify its efforts, while farming its national policies and strategies, to uphold the fundamental
principles enshrined in the constitution, those of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as
those of the international and regional human rights instruments to which she is a party.
IX. Strengthen its efforts to meet its obligations under the treaty bodies to which she is a party.
X. Contemplate adhering to the remaining international and regional human rights instruments.
XI. Continue to cooperate with the special procedures and mechanisms of the Council with a view to
further improve its human rights situations.
XII. Continue to promote the constructive role of the NGOs in the work of the Council, and would
strive to promote effective participation of the NGOs from developing countries in the work of the
Council.
XIII. Endeavor to further integrate the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental
freedoms into her national policies, including that on development and poverty eradication, with
special focus on the rights of women, children, minorities and persons with disabilities.
XIV. Continue to work towards further strengthening and consolidating the institutional structures that
promote good governance, democracy, human rights and rule of law.
XV. Continue to endeavour, through its national development policies, to ensure provision of the basic
necessities of her people including food, clothing, shelter, education and primary health care.
XVI. Establish the National Human Rights Commission as soon as possible.
XVII. Separate the judiciary and the executive as soon as feasible.

14 of 10
 Annex-4

Extra Judicial Killings from 2004 to June 2008

Nature of Violence 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 (till June)

‘Crossfire’ (without arrest) 46 94 62 81 54
‘Crossfire’ (In custody) 88 260 196 34 4
Physical torture (without arrested) 3 1 7 9 2
Physical torture (in custody) 23 11 26 18 7
Shot (without arrest) 33 11 61 24 5
Shot (in custody) 12 - - 14 1
Suicide (as claimed by the police 2 - - -
1
after arrest)
Total 207 377 352 180 74

Source: ASK Documentation Unit.

Annex-4.1

Comparative Data on Violence against Women, 2004 - 2007

Category of Violence 2004 2005 2006 2007

Acid Attacks 228 130 142 95
Dowry Related Violence 352 356 334 294
Rape 618 585 515 436
Gang Rape 359 250 226 198
‘Fatwa’-related Violence 35 46 39 35
Domestic Violence 264 333 301 283

Source: ASK Documentation Unit.

Annex-4.2

Workplace Deaths in 2007

Sector Number of Deaths

Construction 107
Manufacturing 68
Service 36
Ship-breaking 6
Miscellaneous (including port, inland shipping) 12
TOTAL 229

Source: Documentation of Bangladesh Institute for Labour Studies (BILS).

15 of 10
 Annex-5

List of reports by Bangladesh submitted and considered by

UN Treaty Monitoring Bodies

Treaty Body Latest report submitted and Latest concluding Report due
considered observations
HR Committee 2 Reports due
including the initial
report

CESCR 2 reports due

including the initial
report

CERD Seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth and March 2001 Three Periodic
eleventh periodic report: Due on reports due
July 1992, Submitted on March
2000 and examined on March
2001
CEDAW Fifth periodic report, due on July 2004 Combined Sixth &
December 2001, submitted on Seventh periodic
December 2002, examined on report due on
July 2004 06/12/2009
CRC Submitted third and fourth September 2003 1 Report due on
periodic report on 04/09/2007 01/09/2007

OP-CRC-AC Initial report submitted on January 2006

16/11/2004
OP-CRC-SC Initial report submitted on 5 July 2005
12/12/2005
CAT 3 Reports due
including the Initial
report which was due
on 04/11/99

16 of 10
 Annex-6

Recent Concluding Comments by CERD, CEDAW and CRC Committees on Bangladesh’s

Compliance with International Treaty Obligations

The Committee on CERD, in its last concluding comments on the 2001 Bangladesh report, made the
following recommendations:
 Give full effect to the provisions of article 4 of the Convention in [the state party’s] domestic legal order,
ensure penalization of acts of racial discrimination, and ensure access to effective protection and remedies
under article 6 of the Convention through competent national tribunals and State institutions besides the
High Court Division of the Supreme Court, in respect of acts of racial discrimination.
 Implement effective measures to guarantee to all Bangladeshis, without distinction based on race, colour,
descent, or national or ethnic origin, the right to security of person and protection by the State against
violence or bodily harm.
 Intensify its efforts in this regard and recommends that the State party provide in its next report details
regarding, inter alia, the work of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council, the effective results of the
work of the Land Commission, the repatriation and rehabilitation of refugees and internally displaced
persons in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, the work of the Special Task Force on Internally Displaced Persons,
the resettlement of Bengali settlers outside the Chittagong Hill Tracts pursuant to the deliberations of the
Land Commission, and the process of withdrawal of security forces from the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
 Include in its next report relevant information about the enjoyment of the rights contained in article 5 of
the Convention by all groups, including castes.
 to continue to take steps to strengthen awareness about human rights in general, and the Convention in
particular, through education.
 Undertake training in the provisions of the Convention in the training programmes of law enforcement
officials.
 Provide in subsequent reports, inter alia, information about jurisprudence relating specifically to
violations of the Convention, including the awarding by courts of adequate reparation for such violations.
 Ratify the amendments to article 8, paragraph 6, of the Convention, adopted on 15 January 1992 at the
Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties.

The CEDAW Committee, in its last concluding observations on the 2004 sate party report, made the
following recommendations:
 Expedite the decision on the withdrawal of the remaining reservations to the Convention within a concrete
time frame;
 Adopt the definition of discrimination against women in conformity with article 1 of the Convention;
 Adopt specific legislation on domestic violence within a clear time frame;
 Adopt without delay a uniform Family Code that fully complies with the provisions of the Convention;
and
 Ensure that a new citizenship law, which is in line with article 9 of the Convention, is adopted without
delay, in order to eliminate all provisions that discriminate against women in the area of nationality.

The Committee on CRC, in its last concluding observations on the 2003 Bangladesh report, made the
following recommendations:
 Take all effective measures to harmonize its domestic legislation fully with the provisions and principles
of the Convention, in particular with regard to existing minimum ages of criminal responsibility and of
marriage, child labour and harmful traditional practices affecting children and raise the minimum age of
criminal responsibility to an internationally acceptable level;
 Expedite the establishment of the Directorate for Children’s Affairs;
 Expedite the process to establish an independent and effective mechanism in accordance with the
Principles relating to the Status of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights
(the Paris Principles, General Assembly resolution 48/134, annex) and the Committee’s General
Comment No. 2 on the role of independent human rights institutions;
 Fix a minimum age for admission to employment, in line with internationally accepted standards;
17 of 10
 Ensure that domestic legislation on minimum ages is respected and implemented throughout the country;
 Amend its legislation so that citizenship can be passed on to children from either their father or their
mother. It also encourages the State party to introduce proactive measures to prevent statelessness;
 Review existing legislation and explicitly prohibit all forms of corporal punishment in the family, schools
and institutions, as well as carry out public education campaigns about the negative consequences of ill-
treatment of children, and promote positive, non-violent forms of discipline as an alternative to corporal
punishment, particularly at the local level and in traditional communities;
 Adopt national refugee legislation and accede to the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees of 1951
and its Protocol of 1967;
 Establish an independent child-sensitive and accessible system for the reception and processing of
complaints by children.

18 of 10

Invitations to and Visits by Special Procedures
Standing Invitation
Latest visit or Mission
Reports
Visits requested but not
agreed upon
Visits agreed upon in
principle
Annex-7
No
SR on the right to food in 2002, Report E/CN/.4/2004/10/Add.1
(R in 2005) SR on adequate housing, (R in 2006) IE on minority
issues, (R in 2006) SR on summary executions, (R in 2007) SR on
independence of judges and lawyers
(A) SR on freedom of religion, request made in 2003
19 of 10